28 Apr 2021
More than 100 school leaders and counsellors from over 90 Cambridge schools attended the East Asia Schools Mini Conference 2021 in Guangzhou on 23 April – our first national event in China since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The conference focused on university admissions. The plenary and two breakout sessions were streamed live so that school counsellors who could not attend in person, and the audience outside of China, could still participate. The live sessions attracted 715 participants from 28 provinces and special administrative regions of China, Japan, Mongolia and Korea.
Dr Jing Zhao, Cambridge International’s Regional Director, East Asia, described how the global pandemic had transformed the trends for studying abroad. Cambridge International’s East Asia team is working to provide a platform for school counsellors to share best practice and experience to support Cambridge learners in mainland China.
Professor Youmin Xi, Board Member and Executive President, Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University shared the challenges faced by the internationalisation of education during the coronavirus crisis, and the university’s response to those challenges. Iris Cheung, Head of Faculty for University and Communications, Shenzhen College of International Education, shared her insights on how to find the right fit for students using a holistic approach.
Dora Duan, Cambridge International’s Senior Recognitions Manager, East Asia chaired a panel discussion to answer questions from participants. Professor Youmin Xi, Iris Cheung and Dr Jing Zhao were joined on the panel by Ms Jo Hawley, British Consulate-General Guangzhou, and Dr Sherwin Liu, Director of Academics, Operation Centre, Bright Scholar Education Holdings Ltd.
The afternoon breakout sessions were devoted to exploring issues in various destination countries, which provided an opportunity for school counsellors to share insights with colleagues about the rapidly changing admission landscape.
Dr Jing Zhao said: ‘We are fortunate that the Covid-19 situation is well under control in China and a conference of up to 500 people is permitted. The East Asia team is planning to host a principals forum in Shanghai and a teacher forum in Beijing in the coming months with the themes of ‘Building an Active and Reflective School Community’ and ‘Building an Active and Reflective Learning Community’ respectively. These events will provide a platform for Cambridge schools to share their challenges and best practice after the pandemic, and build a stronger community to support each other.’
We also took this Cambridge schools reunion as an opportunity to host the Outstanding Cambridge Learner Awards. Winners from south and west China, their families and the conference participants celebrated the success together.
In her speech, the winner of the Best Across Four Cambridge International AS Levels award said: ‘I have found that the Cambridge International A Level programme serves as a starting point for learners during their pursuit of studies, rather than the end of academic life in high school.’